Workplace injury is not so uncommon than you’d think. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were roughly 2.9 million workplace injuries and health ailments in the private sector alone last year. And while none of these reported cases resulted in any fatalities, such incidents can strike a blow to workforce morale, not to mention inhibit the growth of your business by increasing costs and zapping productivity. Here’s five reasons why you should teach your employees first aid.

Accidents Happen

As mentioned earlier, workplace accidents and resulting injuries can and do happen enough times that a business should have countermeasures against it. As a business owner, you have to acknowledge the fact that the future is uncertain, and it’s always better to be on the side of prepared. Having first aid training can turn your employees into proficient first responders in the event that a coworker gets hurt. Receiving immediate care and attention in the event of an injury reduces the physical damages and improves recovery time for your employees.

Get Peace of Mind

In an emergency situation, employees often do not have the technical training and expertise to tend to a coworker in distress. During these high-stress and high-pressure situations, people get overwhelmed with panic, fear, and anxiety, all of which stem from their lack of training. By subjecting your workforce to regular first aid and emergency response training exercises, you equip them not just with the physical skills, but also the confidence and peace of mind that they can actually and competently provide emergency care when needed.

Expedite Your Response Time

The response time in an emergency situation is perhaps the most important factor when gauging the effectiveness of first aid. Having resources including a First Aid kit and manual is a smart and practical idea for workplace safety, but reading through a manual is oftentimes not an option during an emergency situation. With first aid training, employees can quickly use the tools they have within the surrounding to provide immediate, temporary relief for the injured coworker.

Strengthen Staff Relationship

Courses in first aid training aren’t just designed to spit out generic care and treatment knowledge that you can easily search online. Many of the beginner courses and even the online ACLS renewal programs are designed for large staffs and can help boost morale and team-building. First aid training and basic life support training, which are often conducted with a dummy and a certified professional, are interactive and can encourage employees to help each other learn the fundamental skills for administering first aid.

Lower Costs

Compared to the costs of footing your employees’ medical bills in the event that they are injured due to an unsafe and poorly maintained work environment, the costs of first aid training are significantly lower. In addition to medical bills, companies could also be held legally accountable in the event of an employee injury or fatality in the workplace. In order to minimize costs, a lot of businesses, especially large corporations and multilevel offices, will submit one or two employees to undergo the training. However, if you consider the financial impact that injuries have in a workplace, company-wide training may be a more economical option.

Final Thoughts

Learning first aid can help companies and their respective staff respond to emergency situations in a more calm, collect, and effective manner. Training how to respond to a coworker who has accidentally fallen and broken a bone or is unresponsive not only gives you and your employees confidence and peace of mind when coming in for work every day, but also improves the recovery time and financial impact of such incidents to your business.